Burial-vault.



N0. 7il,7l3. Patented Oct. 2|, I902.

G. BOLSER. BUBIAL VAULT.

A lication filed Dec. so, 1901. (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet l.

WITNESSES:

ATTORNEY.

1N VEN T OR.

THE uonms PETER co, PumaLm-I WASHINGTON. a. c.

N0. 7||,7|3. Patented Oct. 2|, |902. a. BOLSER.

BURIAL VAULT.

(Application filed Dec. 30, 1901.)

(No Model.) 3 Shbets-$heet 2',

'- YWJZWESSES: INVENTOR gm 1 M ATTORNEK un.7||,7|s. Patehted 001. 2!, I902. a. BOLSER.

I BURIAL VAULT. (Application filed Dec. 30. 1901.)

(Ila Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

llHIIIiIIIfl IIIIIi/A'II A WITNESSES: Q w. B Y L I ATTORNEY.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GILBERT BOLSER, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA.

BURIAL-VAU LT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 711,713, dated October 21, 1902.

Application filed December 30, 1901. Serial No. 87,726. (No model.)

To all whom it floaty concern.

Be it known that I, GILBERT BOLSER, of Indianapolis, county of Marion, and State of Indiana, have invented a certain new and useful Bu rial-Vault; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which like figures refer to like parts.

The object of this invention is toimprove the construction of burial -vanlts made of cement and the like to be placed in the grave to receive the casket.

The full nature of the vault and the manner of construction of the same will appear from the accompanying drawings and the following description.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan View of the vault complete and sealed, except the lid is removed from the right half. Fig. 2 is a plan of an end and a portion of a side lying down adjacent each other with their inner surface upward. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is an elevation of the edge of an end piece and the inside of a portion of one side united, as in Fig. 3, and one of the bottom pieces laid in place. Fig. 5 is vertical cross-section on the line 5 5 of Fig. 1, showing portions in elevation. Fig. 6 is a vertical section on the line 6 6 of Fig. 1. Fig. 7 is an end elevation of the metal frame in the lids. Fig. 8 is a side elevation of the same. Fig. 9 is a plan view of the metal frame in the bottom pieces. Fig. 9 is a section on the line A A of Fig. 1.

In detail the vault consists of the end pieces 10, the side pieces 11, the bottom pieces 12, and the lids 13. These are all cement slabs or blocks molded or formed in the desired shape over suitable metal frames to give them great strength. The sides and ends have a ledge along the lower edge thereof to support the bottom pieces, which are laid upon said ledge after the sides and ends are united. Hence in thisvault the bottom does not rest upon the ground and support the rest of the vault, as well as the casket within and the dirt deposited on the vault in the grave. This bottom supports only the casket. The sides and ends have also ledges 16 near their upper edges that do not extend inward as far as the lower ledges 15. The upper ledges 16 support the lids and are placed sufficiently below the upper edges of the sides and ends for such upper edges to be flush with the upper surface of the lids. The ledges 16 are formed by merely reducing the thickness of the pieces along their upper edges. At the junction of the end and side pieces a vertical recess or chamber 17 is provided, in which a metal union of the parts is made, and then the chamber is filled with cement 18,'so as to cover the metal union and render the joint not only tight but permanent, as the metal union is then quite inaccessible. After the sides and ends are thus united the bottom pieces are laid in place and the joints cemented, as shown. After the lids are in placecement is filled about the edges. In this way the vault is hermetically sealed.

The metal frames 20 are embedded about midway in the ends. They consist of a vertical piece with hook-shaped ends to resist extraction and a pair of parallel arms ending in the eyes 21, that extend into the recess or chamber 17. Similar metal frames are embedded in the sides and have eyes extending into said recess or chamber above or below the eyes from the end frames. A pin 22 through these registering eyes completes the metal union of the sides and ends, as shown in Figs. 3 and6.

The sides in the vault shown are formed of two sections each, that are united by the bolts 25 through the inturned ends 26 of the metal frames 27. The frames 27 are formed and embedded like the frames 20. Recesses 28 are provided in the cement to render the nuts on the bolts 25 accessible. The frame 30 is embedded in the bottom pieces and is formed of a rectangular set of side and end bars and the additional pair of bars 31 with the loops or projections 32, that extend upward above the surface of the bottom to enable it to be handled and especially to support the casket above the bottom,so that the straps under the casket while it is being lowered into the vault may be easily withdrawn.

The frame embedded in the lids consists of the side bars 35 and the cross-bars 36, 37, and

38, placed one higher than the other, as shown tions 41, that extend up into recesses 42 in the lids and above the surface thereof, whereby they are handled. A central cross-bar 43 is placed in the lids in the recesses 44, and the ends are bolted down by the bolts 45 in the sides and held by the embedded plate 46. (Shown in Fig. 2.) The recesses 42 and 44 are filled with cement to cover the projections 41 and bar 43, whereby the lids are rendered inaccessible and immovable when their edges are cemented.

From the foregoing explantion it is seen that this vault is exceedingly strong in its parts and when sealed cannot be opened without destruction and is tight and has the weight resting on the sides and ends. It is not limited to the form of metal frames herein shown or to the details of construction.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A burial-vault formed of sections with recesses on the inner sides of the sections at their union that form a chamber capable of receiving and holding cement, and a metallic fastening extending from the ends of said sections of cement into said chamber for uniting the ends of said sections.

. 2. A burial-vault formed of sections with a vertical groove along the inner edge of thesections at the end so that when said sections are placed at a right angle to each other for uniting them a vertical chamber will be formed at their union, metallic pieces extending from said sections with eyes registering with each other in said chamber when the sections are in position tobe united, and a pin that extends through said eyes for uniting them, whereby the chamber may be filled with cement and said eyes and pin be enveloped thereby.

3. A burial-vault formed of sections made of cement, metallic frames embedded in said sections formed of bars extending parallel with the ends of the sections to be joinedtogether and arms extending from said bars at a right angle toward the ends of the sections and formed into eyes that register with each other when the sections are in a position to be united, and a pin for uniting said eyes, whereby the metallic frames will resist extraction from the cement sections when under strain.

4. A burial-vault having a plurality of side pieces formed of cement for each side of the wall and recessed on. the inner side at their adjacent ends, metallic frames embedded in each of the side pieces near their adjacent ends with the outer ends of said frames extending into said recess and turned at a right angle to abut against each other, and bolts for securing said ends of the metallic frames together. a

5. Aburial-vault formed of cement sections and having cement bottom pieces, and loops extending up from the bottom pieces, whereby said bottom pieces can be manipulated and a support for the casket above the bottom will be provided.

6. Aburial-vault includingabottom formed of a metal frame enveloped by cement, said metallic frame consisting of a pair of side bars and a pair of end bars secured at their ends to each other to form a rectangular frame, and a second pair of bars extending across the metal frame with loops extending upward above the surface of the bottom.

7. A burial-vault including a lid made of cement, a metal plate embedded in the lid, and bolts embedded in each side of the vault that extend through the ends of said plate and have nuts on their upper end for securing the lid upon the vault.

8. A burial-vault including sides and a lid formed of cement, the sides having ledges near their upper edges to receive the lid, plates embedded in the sides below the ledges, bolts extending up through said plates and above the ledges,.a recess across the lid on the upper side, a metal plate in said recess perforated at its ends so that the bolts from the sides of the vault will extend through said plate, and nuts on said bolts for fastening the lid down in a closed position whereby the lid will be held in place and the recess in the lid may be filled with cement so as to render the nuts and plate inaccessible.

9. A burial-vault having a lid formed of a metal frame enveloped by cement, said metal frame consisting of two side bars, two end cross-bars secured on the under side thereof, and cross bars secured on the upper side thereof and curved upward in the middle, one cross-bar being secured upon the other and said upper cross-bar being bent upward near each end to form loops extending above the surface of the lid.

In witness whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature in the presence of the witnesses herein named.

GILBERT BOLSER.

Witnesses:

FLORENCE E. BRYANT, V. H. LOCKWOOD.

too 

